"Face it Tiger...you just hit the jackpot."

by Beau Smith

Passion.

Is it truly possible in these modern times to have utter passion for reading comic books?

I ask this because I realized that my passion for reading comic books is not what it used to be. I don’t mean that I’ve lost my love of reading comic books, I mean that love has changed; not for the better, yet not for the worse.

Amazing Spider-Man Omnibus Volume2

Let me back up a little. Recently I had ordered THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN OMNIBUS VOLUME 2 from right here at Westfield Comics. Gradually I’ve been buying the Marvel Comics Omnibus editions that collect the comic books that hooked me as a hardcore comic book reader. Most of those were Marvel Comics that were being published in the mid-1960s. It was DAREDEVIL #15 that officially was THE comic book that made Marvel Comics my favorite.

Iconic Marvel Corner Logos Of The 1960s

At that point, whenever I would go to the supermarket, drug store, or local newsstand, I would flip through the corners of the comics looking for that Marvel corner icon/logo. Generally, if I had the money, I would buy whatever Marvel Comic they had. If personal funds were limited at that time, I would go down the list of my favorites and pray that next time I had an extra 12 cents, that other issue of say, Journey Into Mystery, would still be there.

Don’t get me wrong, I still bought DC Comics and others; Gold Key, Archie, and Charlton, but my Marvel purchases came first. It was as if Stan Lee knew what was in my grade school mind and wrote those stories just for me.

"I'll show you mine if you show me yours."

Getting back to my recent AMAZING SPIDER-MAN OMNIBUS VOLUME 2 purchase, I started reading it as soon as I got it. I thought I had bought a time machine. As I read page after page I found myself able to say the dialogue almost panel per panel. Please remember, back in the 60s comics were harder to get. We didn’t have comic shops, mail order, and online services. While waiting for the latest issue of AMAZING SPIDER-MAN to come out, we would read and re-read the last month’s issue a multitude of times. By the time the new issue came out I was well schooled in what was going on in the storyline and the sub-plots. It made the new issue that much more enjoyable. I more than got the cover price out of my comics.

As I looked through THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN OMNIBUS VOLUME 2 cover gallery, I could remember where I bought almost every original issue. I remembered what poses and panels I used to trace or draw in my school binder. I even remembered some of the letters in the letters column. This all may sound a bit strange to you, but I think if you were to poll other readers my age, you’d find that a lot of them did the same thing.

This makes me wonder, do readers today feel that same sorta passion when they read comics? I can say I honestly don’t, but you have to remember, not only am I older, but I’ve been in the business of comic books as a writer and marketing VP for 25 years. I know the ins and outs of almost every detail of comics, it will change your perspective a bit. Not in a bad way, just in the view of an experienced eye and mind.

I hope and pray readers today have the same passion for reading comic books that I did during that special time. With all the changes in comic books and technology I don’t know if it’s possible. I’m not talking about “the good old days”, I’m talking the reality of change. I love comic books, but not the same way I once did. That’s not any less, but I’m also not sure if it’s more either. It’s just different.

"Some guys have all the luck."

I wonder if readers even re-read new comics now. I’d love to know if they do and if so, how many times? I’m not passing judgment if they don’t, I’m just interested. I want today’s readers to enjoy today’s comics as much as I did when my passion burned red hot, when it was pure. I truly hope that somewhere, somebody is re-reading their latest issue of Wonder Woman or Captain America and can remember dialogue or a climatic scene as I did when Spider-Man found out for the first time that Norman Osborne was The Green Goblin or when Mary Jane Watson first said “Face it, Tiger…you just hit the jackpot.”  

Please think about this, ask your buddies if they have the passion. I really believe it’s well worth asking yourself and others. Again, please don’t think I’ve lost my passion for comics, I have not, it has changed like I have with age. I’m now experience rich, but can no longer jump a fence in a single bound.

My last request for you is to take the time to re-read a new comic and ask yourself was it worth it? I hope it was.

Your well-read amigo,

Beau Smith

The Flying Fist Ranch

www.flyingfistranch.com

KC Carlson. Art by Keith Wilson.

by KC Carlson

A recent storyline in Amazing Spider-Man (ASM) jumped out at me, reminding me that I’ve been remiss in not talking about this great comic series. It’s become a bit of an underdog at Marvel, fighting for attention from the X-books and Avengers titles and their ongoing event-driven storytelling.

Amazing Spider-Man #667

ASM is no stranger to event stories — the recent Spider Island event was a wonderful, heroic, sinister, and wildly amusing Tilt-a-Whirl of expectations met and status quo upheaval that reinvigorated the series without being obvious about it. Granted, not everything was great about Spider Island. A couple of the tie-ins didn’t really integrate well, and I still think the title is weird, albeit descriptive. Still, it was heads and tails better than the concurrently running Fear Itself, which collapsed under the weight of its reaching-too-far storylines and too many crossovers, and the weird vibe of everything seemingly being undone in the epilogues. At least that had fantastic art by Stuart Immonen and Wade Von Grawbadger.

The Spidey story that caught my eye wasn’t one of the regular epic battles with a major Spider-foe, nor an angsty confrontation with the devil over personal history. In fact, in another era, it might be called a day-in-the-life story — a type of storytelling where there aren’t any major hero/villain fights, nor much conflict at all. These were stories about what happened on a “normal” day in the life of our superhero.

[“A Day in the Life” also became a much-abused cliché. I still very much remember the early 1990s DC Editorial Meeting where Mike Carlin actually screamed at us editors to stop commissioning them. “They can’t all be day-in-the-life stories! Somebody’s gotta punch somebody!” ]

This particular Spidey story wasn’t just another day-in-the-life story — although it takes place over an approximate 24-hour period. It’s also a first-class “puzzle story” of the type that frequently came out of the Julius Schwartz editorial office over at DC Comics in the 1960s and 70s. And it’s fairly obvious that Spidey writer Dan Slott was subconsciously channeling John Broome big-time that month. The story in question? “I Killed Tomorrow” in Amazing Spider-Man #678 and 679.

OBLIGATORY SPOILER-FREE SYNOPSIS

Amazing Spider-Man #678

Peter Parker, after a sweet character-building intro (where he runs into an old (old) girlfriend, nice touch), heads to his job at Horizon Labs, where he’s been assigned to “double check duty” for one of his more unusual colleagues, Grady Scraps. (BTW, “double check duty” is basically checking their math so that “they don’t pull a ‘Victor Von Doom’ and blow their face off” — another nice reference.) Grady has invented something he calls the Doorway to Tomorrow!, which he has installed on the doorway to Horizon’s break room. To demonstrate, he steps through, and seconds later returns with… tomorrow’s Daily Bugle. Peter, wanting to check this out, steps through the doorway — but he doesn’t step into the benign future that Grady encountered. Instead, he sees all of NYC violently destroyed, with everyone dead. He also discovers a partially destroyed analog watch — with its hands frozen at the time the city was destroyed, 3:10.

The un-ticking watch ironically becomes a symbolic ticking clock as Peter (and Grady and the enigmatic Madam Web) attempt to figure out how to prevent that particular timeline/mass destruction from ever happening. It becomes increasingly obvious that something Spidey did (or didn’t do) triggered the catastrophe. BTW, ASM #678 offers up a great subtle joke by changing the usual “The World’s Greatest Super Hero!” logo blurb to “The World’s Worst Super Hero!” for this issue only.

TIME IS A CONCEPT BY WHICH WE MEASURE OUR FUN!

Amazing Spider-Man #679

What follows are two issues of Slott dealing deftly with all the usual time travel paradoxes and ephemera — this time completely understandable to even dummies like me — seasoned with plenty of Slott’s trademark humor, while just piling on the suspense. Case in point, Slott pulls an amazing cliffhanger-resolution stunt that had me howling with nervous laughter, and then he immediately drops another dramatic game changer just two pages later. Part Two also offers up more complications with Silver Sable, Flag Smasher, and a certain redhead (who’s not seen enough in ASM these days). Then Slott adds the perfect button to the story in the very last panel.

The artwork for both issues is by Humberto Ramos and Victor Olazaba. It’s brilliant — but not so spectacular that it overwhelms the story. You’d think that Ramos’ modern angularity would be a distraction, or inappropriate in a character whose style has traditionally been slick — John Romita, John Byrne, Todd McFarlane — or earthbound — Steve Ditko, Sal Buscema, Ross Andru — but somehow it works. These days, I look forward to Ramos’ frequent appearances on the title.

OVERALL…

Amazing Spider-Man: Big Time

So, a big thumbs-up to Amazing Spider-Man overall. This story is just the latest example of how well Slott has been handling a long-running character who seems fresh again. Starting with “Big Time” in ASM #648, Slott went solo on the book after being a part of the Webheads writers collective that was responsible for the previous 100 issues, and such great stories as the villain-building “The Gauntlet”, “Shed”, and “Grim Hunt” — with the latter being a sequel to the popular “Kraven’s Last Hunt” story from 1987.

It’s hard to believe that this was the series that most everyone wanted to quit after 2007’s “One More Day” storyline ham-fistedly changed (reset?) the ongoing continuity of the series. Many did quit. But in the five years since (with well over 100 issues produced on an accelerated — now the “norm” — schedule), a small legion of talented writers and artists have rallied the book back to greatness.

Obviously, a lot of “comic book time” has passed in ASM, but the book has survived decades of clones, wars (secret or not), lost relationships, death and resurrection, cosmic stuff, stupid stuff, creepy sexual stuff, and even Spidey literally turning “dark” (or at least his costume). Most of that is gone now, and the book has a wonderfully unique identity — being true to the angsty “fun” and ever-changing relationships of the Lee/Ditko/Romita era, updated with powerful modern-era storytelling.

Spidey meets Daredevil in Amazing Spider-Man #677

A lot of this, I think, has to do with its editor, Steve Wacker. One of the few current comics editors who is actually allowed to have a public personality (mostly as seen through The Amazing Spider-Mail, the regular Spidey lettercol), Wacker has done an excellent job of keeping the books on schedule two or three times a month for the last five years, as well as coordinating the dozens and dozens of creators needed to produce 24-36 on-time issues a year (plus minis and Annuals). He learned how to do that by editing the white-knuckle-ride that was DC’s 52, before Marvel hired him away (mid-52) to be the Spidey wrangler. While he was at DC, he was also one of the Legion of Legion of Super-Heroes Editors. (So he knows the secret handshake.) He also knows quirk when he sees it and is smart enough to encourage it in the books he edits.

Wacker’s Spidey letter columns are throwbacks to old-style lettercols. He makes fun of himself, playfully berates his assistant de jour, runs lots of letters from little kids, service men and women, returning Spidey readers, and especially new Spidey readers — because as a good editor, he knows a fan seeing his or her name in print will probably make them a comic book fan for life. It’s one of the best lettercols out there. (Sadly, there’s not much competition. Hopefully that will change soon. I note that more and more Marvel books now have regular lettercols.)

MORE THAN SPIDEY

Daredevil #7

Wacker’s also editorially responsible for the current Daredevil series by Mark Waid and Paolo Rivera — another high-energy yet humorous corner of the Marvel Universe. If, somehow, you haven’t been reading this series (and why not?), I’d suggest starting with Daredevil #7 — a great “done-in-one” issue that has garnered a lot of attention (and hopefully some upcoming comics awards this summer). Yes, it’s that good. Plus, the title just crossed over with ASM (Big Fun reads!) and will again in a couple of months, with The Punisher as referee.

Seeing Amazing Spider-Man (and Daredevil) back on an increasing number of must-read lists is incredibly heartening. Marvel Comics: Not just mutants and Avengers and guys with guns! (…but they’ve got those too!)

KC CARLSON ASKS: Where are the New 52 lettercolumns? Are there no letter writers in that new universe? DC was doing so well reintroducing lettercols in the “old” DCU — then, SKRAK! — cut off at the knees for crappy (and needlessly repetitive and lazy) promo pages (aka ADS!). Phooey!

KC Carlson

by KC Carlson

Avengers Vs. X-Men

THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM: Although this one’s probably too big not to talk about, Marvel’s upcoming Avengers vs. X-Men event will be close to just printing money for the House of Ideas. But it also stands a pretty good chance of being a good read considering the talent that’s lined up to tell the tale. Writers are Brian Michael Bendis, Jason Aaron, Matt Fraction, Jonathan Hickman, and Ed Brubaker. (Architects all!) Artists are Frank Cho, John Romita, Jr., Olivier Coipel, and Adam Kubert. It starts off in March with a 40-page #0 issue (order NOW!) by Bendis, Aaron, and Cho that sets up everything for the 12-issue, bi-weekly main event.

The story revolves around redheads. Hope Summers (the first mutant born after House of M/Decimation and star of Generation Hope) and the Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff) are the featured players in AvX #0. Wanda has been mostly off-camera since House of M, except for Avengers: The Children’s Crusade. (The promotion for AvX kinda spoiled the ending of that series, although Marvel probably hoped that it would have been all wrapped up before now.) And it’s been rumored that a certain Phoenix Force may be involved in the main event, triggering rumors of a third flame-haired female appearing — who is the real elephant in the room — and completing the redhead trifecta.

Considering that two out of these three characters (Hope’s pretty new, still) have been both beloved and battered by Marvel storytellers over decades of appearances, and that the story will be using some of those more controversial (some decades-old) storylines of the past as touchstones, and that these current writers weren’t named “Architects” for nothin’ — well, it looks like Avengers vs. X-Men is one of those stories that could provoke both brickbats and bouquets, as well as taking the Marvel Universe into a completely new and different place. For it to truly succeed as a modern classic, it must have at least as much real closure as forward momentum. ‘Nuff said.

Avengers: The Children's Crusade

BTW, Avengers: The Children’s Crusade is being collected in full, in a 248-page hardcover edition (with extras), just before AvX comes out. Other current series that will apparently be helpful to know about beforehand will be Fear Itself and Schism, as well as older events like House of M and even the original Death of Phoenix story. (Homework!) If nothing else, Avengers vs. X-Men will be rewarding to those fans who have been looking for answers to long-standing questions. Will we get them? I dunno, but I trust most of the guys writing this to at least tell a great story!

Avengers Assemble #1

MORE AVENGERS! ALL THE TIME!: As if Avengers vs. X-Men wasn’t big enough, there’s an Avengers movie this summer! You know what that means: more Avengers books than there are Kardashians! First up is a new monthly title– Avengers Assemble — by Brian Bendis and Mark Bagley, telling all-new, in-contunity Avengers tales focusing on the characters that star in the movie (Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, and Hawkeye). The major villains in this new series will be the new Zodiac. It’s currently scheduled to be an ongoing comic, but don’t be surprised if it wraps up (or gets a new writer) when Bendis retires from the Avengers books later this year. There’s also Prelude to Marvel’s The Avengers (perhaps the most boring comic book title ever), a four-issue series designed for the general, non-comics reading public to explain how the Avengers and other longtime Marvel groups (like S.H.I.E.L.D.) actually operate. It’s said to be one of the “Official Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-in comics” — whatever the heck that is!

Avengers: The Road to The Avengers

In Avengers-related collected books, there’s Avengers: The Road to The Avengers (Huh? Marvel’s regular title guy must be off this month), a 256-page collection of classic in-contunity stories of the movie’s star characters (mostly Iron Man and Cap). Avengers: Legion of the Unliving is a 256-page collection about your favorite dead (but not Zombie™) Avengers throughout their history. Avengers: West Coast Avengers Assemble is a new version of a previous collection focusing on the early years of the Hawkeye-led West Coast team (with selected other stores). For more Hawkeye, see Avengers: Hawkeye — Solo, collecting the recent Avengers: Solo miniseries.

Avengers: Mythos

Avengers: Mythos collects the recent Avengers origins solo books including Thor, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, and Luke Cage, along with Mythos: Hulk and Mythos: Captain America. Plus, Marvel Masterworks: Avengers Volume 4 is now available in paperback format. Finally, there is Avengers Assembled: An Oral History of Earth’s Mightiest Avengers, collecting the apparently much-reviled text back-up features from the first dozen or so Avengers (2010) and New Avengers (2010) issues, written by Brian Bendis. This 176-page collection features classic Avengers art by Jack Kirby, Don Heck, John Buscema, Neal Adams, and others, and it will include never-before-printed chapters by Bendis. This is on my must-have list this month, as I love oral histories, even constructed fictional ones. A recent oral history about the music video age (I Want My MTV!) was a must-read for lovers of pop culture, and this Avengers book stands a chance of having similar appeal.

X-Men Season One

THREE MORE SEASON ONES: Marvel offers three more original Season One hardcover graphic novels featuring their greatest characters in March, following up their first one (Fantastic Four) from last month. X-Men, written by Dennis Hopeless and penciled by Jamie McKelvie, retells the tale of the original five mutants (Cyclops, Marvel Girl (Jean Grey), Angel, Iceman, and the Beast) arriving at Professor Charles Xavier’s School for mutants. Too bad they’re attacked by Magneto and the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants! . . . Daredevil is written by Antony Johnston and penciled by Wellington Alves, retelling the early days of the Man Without Fear… and apparently it may not be what we remember! . . . Spider-Man, written by Cullen Bunn and penciled by Neil Edwards, “retells the greatest origin story of all time, retold for a new generation.” All three books are 136-page hardcovers, all available in March, and all include a reprint of a current Marvel hit (Uncanny X-Men (2012) #1, Daredevil (2011) #1, and Avenging Spider-Man #1, respectively). Plus, access to a digital copy at no additional charge.

Amazing Spider-Man #682

MARVEL SHORT TAKES: Amazing Spider-Man #682 begins “the Doc Ock story that you’ve waited 50 years for.” Does that mean you have to be older than 50 to appreciate it? (Yay, a comic book especially for me! Fffffppppth to you, DC!) Does anyone actually edit Marvel’s hype copy? BTW, I’m just joking around. Amazing Spidey is one of the most consistently great books of the past few years — and doesn’t get enough credit for it! . . . One of Marvel’s more interesting alternate universes is getting its own ongoing series by Dave Lapham and Roberto de la Torre. Age of Apocalypse #1 spins out of recent stories in Point One and Uncanny X-Force. Looks very Apocalyps-tastic! . . . The first chapter of what will be the most controversial story of 2012 (they said it, not me) will be in Astonishing X-Men #48. Looks controversal-istic! . . . And in what one hopes isn’t a new trend, there a whole bunch of Last Issues in Marvel’s listings this month. Collect them all!

Funny Stuff by Frank Frazetta

FUNNY STUFF BY FRAZETTA: It’s always tough for artists when they get stereotyped into just one style of drawing (as so often happens with today’s superhero artists). But it happens to everybody. Say the name Frank Frazetta to most folks, and the first thing they’ll think of is either barbarians or babes (or barbarian babes). Most of his career was spent illustrating brutal and violent stories or paintings, but Frazetta also had a “secret” side during his early artistic life. That world is explored in Funny Stuff by Frank Frazetta, a new large-format hardcover from Yoe Books/IDW. At 256 pages, we get a huge sampling of funny animals, hillbilly cartoons, and cute gals like teenage Kathy and Daisy-Mae lookalike Clarabelle — all without a single sword or loincloth! Frazetta collaborator Ralph Bakshi (Fire and Ice) provides an introduction as well as a special painting of the duo as funny animals for the cover. Looks like another great hardcover collection from IDW, edited and designed by Craig Yoe, and cheerfully recommended.

Outland: The Complete Collection

PENGUIN POWER! IDW’s acclaimed Bloom County book series may have wrapped up last year, but there still more Berkeley Breathed barmyness to come in 2012. First up is Outland: The Complete Collection, a 320-page hardcover reprinting every published Outland strip, many of which have never been collected. Outland was a Sunday-only strip, running from 1989-1995, and was a thematic sequel to Bloom County (debuting just four weeks after the former strip wrapped up), featuring many of the same cast members. As a special bonus, we’ll be treated to more of the rare Academia Waltz — the college strip that Breathed produced prior to Bloom County. Later this year, IDW will wrap up its Breathed trifecta with a complete collection of his Opus strip. (Yay! I got a vintage Yuppie Opus plushie for Christmas!)

Fairest #1

DC COMICS: Fairest is a new Fables spin-off with a rotating creative cast. Writer Bill Willingham and artists Phil Jimenez and Andy Lanning provide the art for the first six-issue story arc. Told with varying parts of horror, humor, and adventure, Fairest explores the secret histories of Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, Cinderella, The Snow Queen, Thumbelina, Snow White, Rose Red, and others. Or, in other words, everything that Walt Disney ever wanted to hide from you (probably in his fabled vault!). Adam Hughes (who knows something about drawing females) is the regular cover artist, starting with a wraparound cover for #1 featuring the entire cast. Future story arcs will be written and drawn by other top creators including Chris Roberson (iZombie) and Shawn McManus (Fables) and Lauren Beukes and Inaki Miranda.

Batman: Death By Design

DC SHORT TAKES: Batman: Death by Design (Deluxe Edition) is a new 112-page hardcover Batman graphic novel written by Chip Kidd with art by Dave Taylor with a story centered around architecture and explosions. Yay. Big buildings go boom. DC’s solicitation materials don’t say why this is being called a Deluxe Edition, beyond it being in hardcover. So, caveat emptor, everybody! . . . The much-beloved Night Force series is being revived this month as a six-issue miniseries by co-creator Marv Wolfman and artist Tom Mandrake (taking over for the late co-creator Gene Colan) with a hundreds-of-years-old conspiracy confronting Baron Winters and his crew. . . As mentioned previously, March will see the publication of the final issue of Tiny Titans (sniff). I’m sure that Art and Franco’s new Superman Family Adventures (currently scheduled to debut in a DC 2012 Free Comic Book Day comic) will also be fun, but if Krypto isn’t a super-dog (he’s been replaced in SFA by “Fuzzy the Krypto Mouse”), then that’s just the epitome of dumb decisions by current DC management. Who doesn’t like dogs? DC Comics doesn’t! That’s practically un-American!

Showcase Presents: All-Star Squadron

DC COLLECTIONS: DC is offering a real mixed bag of reprints this month with the first-ever collection of DC’s classic World War II superhero series in Showcase Presents: All-Star Squadron, by Roy Thomas, Jerry Ordway, and others, collecting the first 18 issues, plus the classic crossover with Justice League of America. Superman: Secrets of the Fortress of Solitude collects 200 pages of Superman stories about his Super-Clubhouse, from a large range of decades, by an all-star lineup of creators. Then there’s the second volume of the controversial Secret Society of Super-Villains hardcover, collecting most (but not all) of the cool stuff that they left out of the first volume (after the fact). Plus, (and finally!), new paperback versions of popular hardcovers Jack Kirby’s Fourth World Omnibus Volume 2 and Gotham Central Book 4. And brand new editions of old and incomplete collections Batman: Knightfall Volume 1 and Batman: No Man’s Land Volume 2 — now including chapters not previously collected. But the big news is DC’s first collected hardcovers of several New 52 series: Justice League, Batman, Green Lantern, and Wonder Woman — all collecting the first six issues of the New 52 series. Bob Greenberger will be along soon with a close-up look at Batman: The Court of Owls. (He’ll also take a peek at Marvel’s Elektra by Greg Rucka Ultimate Collection.)

SPEAKING OF THE NEW 52: DC is also releasing 52 new #7 issues in March, many of which have significant creator changes. Don’t forget to check your mileage.

Archie's Sunday Finest

ARCHIE: Fans of classic Archie have a double dose coming with Archie’s Sunday Finest and Archie Archives Volume 5. The former’s from IDW, and it’s a companion to their Archie: The Classic Newspaper Comics (1946-1948) by Bob Montana. Which was an amazing and eye-opening volume of Archie like you’ve never seen before (unless you’re really old and read these strips firsthand). Archie’s Sunday Finest covers roughly the same era (late 40s-early 50s), except these are the Sunday strips — and they’re all in color in a nice big hardcover format. The first IDW Archie volume was an Eisner Award winner (Best Archival Collection/Project—Strips), and it’s likely that this new volume will be in the running for another . . . Dark Horse has another great Archie Archives volume (Volume 5) on the way, collecting the Archie material from Archie Comics #15-18 and Pep Comics #54-56 — including all the Archie-related game pages and house ads! This is a wonderful and high-quality 224-page hardcover series . . . Meanwhile, in current Archie news, this month sees the very popular Archie Meets KISS storyline collected in both a regular 112-page softcover (just the comics story, reprints of all the covers, and a forward by Gene Simmons) and a deluxe hardcover with 48 pages of additional features, including the original pitch and scripts, as well as a KISS photo gallery. This was a major deal for Archie as I saw comic shops that seldom carry Archie comics pick up this series — and sell-through! . . . Archie is also distributing Stan Lee’s newest comic venture — Stan Lee Comics — and its first release, Stan Lee’s Mighty 7. I don’t know much about it, but I do know that Stan Fans will want to know!

Ragemoor #1

CLASSIC COMICS CREATORS: Writer Jan Strnad and artist Richard Corben (Mutant World, Last Voyage of Sinbad) are re-teaming for a new monster/horror series for Dark Horse. Ragemoor is a living castle, its servants aren’t human, and its secrets are horrific. You know it’s scary ‘cause it’s in Black & White. Unless you drip blood on the pages . . . Grizzled old guys Wolverine and Nick Fury team up three times in stories by a gaggle of classic creators including Archie Goodwin, Howard Chaykin, John Buscema, Tom DeFalco, and Shawn McManus in Marvel’s Wolverine & Nick Fury: Scorpio TPB . . . Will Eisner’s The Spirit is the next subject in IDW’s beautiful and massive Artist’s Editions. 144 pages of classic post-WWII Spirit stories are included, printed from the original artwork — at original size! (15” x 22”!) Hope we have boxes big enough to ship these in! . . . And finally , classic E.C. creators are celebrated in the return of a classic E.C. zine. Squa Tront #13 is five years in the making, with features about Basil Wolverton’s first E.C. artwork, Howard Nostrand’s last interview, art from the unpublished Flip #3, and classic E.C. art by Wally Wood, Jack Davis, John and Marie Severin, Harvey Kurtzman , and Roy Krenkel. From Fantagraphics, in anticipation of their new series of E.C. reprints later this year.

KC CARLSON’s New Year’s Resolution: Stop making fun of silly or stupid comics solicitation copy. Oops.

WESTFIELD COMICS is not responsible for the stupid things that KC says. Especially that thing that really irritated you.

KC Carlson's in this photo somewhere.

by KC Carlson

Has to be just a few things this time around, because my LCS didn’t get any Diamond Previews (Stupid Diamond!) this week, so I’m just going to concentrate on Marvel and DC (‘cause I can get their info from la internet), and I’ll be back next week with some indy and book picks!

October’s going to be a weird month for comics. At DC, somehow they’ve managed to set up their schedule so that they are issuing 52 different #2 issues — which are almost impossible to talk about since we won’t see any of the #1s for another few weeks yet. (And get this.. Next month is all #3’s!) “What are the new DC Comics going to be like?” may be the most important question since “Toilet paper: Over the top or behind and under?” The ultimate answer: Only you can decide!!!

As for Marvel, their big summer storylines (Fear Itself and X-Men: Schism) are wrapping up simultaneously — although there’s plenty of new concepts and titles springing out of both those events. And there’s an upheaval in the Hulk-centric books this month — but isn’t there always? He’s (They’re?) just that kind of guy.

STUFF I REALLY LIKE

Daredevil #5

Daredevil #1 by Mark Waid, Paolo Rivera, and Marcos Martin was one of the most refreshing superhero comics I’ve read in years! It harkens back to the old freewheeling DD of years past — before he was dipped in absolute misery — but the real magic of the book is that it doesn’t deny anything from the last decade or so of the series. In the current era of instant reboots every 20 minutes, it’s almost inconceivable to see a creative team focusing on adding to the legend of the character, rather than taking away from it. But it’s not all fun and games — Waid is a well-known expert in both character-building and -destroying, meaning that behind all the fun, there are actual consequences for the characters. I love it when a creative team does a complete job of entertaining me.

Avengers 1959

Anybody else love the 1950s Avengers subplot (more than ably illustrated by Howard Chaykin) from the last New Avengers arc as much as I did? Then you’re gonna love Avengers 1959 — a five-part miniseries both written and drawn by Mr. Chaykin, who has a unique flair for Fifties-style projects. Nick Fury and a bunch of morally-challenged characters and by Chaykin. I’m SO there!

Avengers: The Children's Crusade #8

I’m also loving Avengers: The Children’s Crusade, which, if you haven’t been paying attention, has been dealing with not only the Avengers but the Young Avengers and various X-Men all trying to resolve the Scarlet Witch situation once and for all. It’s getting down to the wire as October’s issue #8 (of 9) is announcing “The Death of an Avenger!” which would usually be a total turn-off for me, but since the most entertaining thing about this series is that I don’t think it’s going where I think it’s going — and how many comics can you say that about? — a death seems almost secondary to the plot. Or at least secondary to the ultimate resolution.

Amazing Spider-Man #671

Mary Jane Watson with Spider-Powers? Kewl. Maybe I need to re-think this Spider-Island thing… If you’re trapped on Spider-Island too long, do you start to see other people as hamburgers and turkey legs?

Casanova: Avaritia #2: Hey! I saw that movie! I don’t think this thing is the same as that thing....

The solicitation copy for Casanova: Avaritia #2 says: “This Issue: Something Happens!” Why can’t more comics be like that?

BOOK-LIKE THINGS

Marvel Masterworks Captain Marvel Vol. 4

Marvel Masterworks: Captain Marvel Volume 4 features the original Marvel Captain Marvel (but not the original original Captain Marvel… Oh, never mind!), reprinting issues #34-46, a particularly good run featuring work by Steve Englehart, Jim Starlin, Al Milgrom, Chris Claremont, and others. This volume features the story that ultimately leads to the character’s death, but readers at the time did not find this out for a couple more years. So consider yourself forewarned (or forearmed… I can never remember which). Remember, Captain Marvel is on Roger Ash’s approved list of comic book characters that stayed dead.

Annotated Sandman Vol. 1

The Annotated Sandman stands to be one of the biggest Gift Books of the season this year because, just like Hypnotoad, everybody loves Sandman! Now they can look super smart-reading it, because it will be forever linked to actual literature! (“And here is where Dodgson was inspired to write Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland by Gaiman’s unique use of staples in Sandman #42.”*) Since most of us already know it’s literature, we can look forward to seeing all of the commentary, historical and contemporary references, hidden meanings, and more, presented side-by-side with the series’ art and text. I’m hoping that they point out the actual panel where you start both The Wizard of Oz and Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon (but for Sandman, you have to play it backwards — but don’t tell anybody!!!). It’s the first of four beautiful (and big! — it’s almost 12” x 12”) hardcover volumes. Volume One is 560 pages, collecting Sandman #1-20. Please note: the comic pages are presented in beautifully toned black and white (see example). Published by Vertigo.

* not an actual quote (hopefully).

Also worth looking at this month is Tales of The Batman: Don Newton Vol. 1 (saluting the late, great artist) and Marvel Firsts: The 1960s, but Bob Greenberger will be along soon to tell you more about both.

The Shade #1

DC MINIS: As if 52 new comic series weren’t enough, DC has added a number of new miniseries to their October schedule — some with long-awaited characters and concepts. One of the most eagerly anticipated is The Shade, the antihero from the acclaimed Starman series. Starman writer James Robinson returns in the 12-issue series, and Cully Hamner is the regular artist, with Starman artist Tony Harris providing the covers. An attack at the Starman Museum sets the stage for a globe-hopping (and time-travelling!) adventure, revealing secrets of the Shade’s true origin . . . The Huntress returns in a six-issue miniseries written by Paul Levitz, the creator of a completely different Huntress (Earth-2 Batman’s daughter). I’ll be very intrigued to see how he might change the character (if at all) for her New 52 debut. This storyline will eventually tie into events in Birds of Prey. Art is by Marcus To and John Dell . . . My Greatest Adventure resurrects one of DC’s classic titles for two of their newest characters. The adventures of Garbage Man by Aaron Lopresti and Tanga by Kevin Maguire continue from Weird Worlds, adding a new Robotman series by Matt Kindt and Scott Kolins. It’s a six-issue series . . . Penguin: Pain and Prejudice is a five-issue mini detailing the dark and painful past of the Bat-foe. It’s by novelist Gregg Hurwitz and artist Szymon Kudranski . . . Neal Adams’ Batman Odyssey returns for a seven-issue Volume 2, picking up right where they left off.

Legion: Secret Origin

LEGION-O-RAMA: Seeing as how DC’s Legion of Super-Heroes franchise is reportedly staying pretty much the same post-New 52, there seems to be a little added LSH activity this month. A six-issue miniseries by Paul Levitz, Chris Batista, and Rich Perotta begins in October, taking a definitive look at LSH origins in the new DCU. Legion: Secret Origin fills in the gaps about not only the Legion’s earliest adventures, but explains how the United Planets was formed, and offers details on R.J. Brande’s first assassination attempt . . . One of my favorite LSH stories is finally back in print! Superboy’s Legion is a great look at an alternate Legion, dreamed up and written (and inked) by life-long Legion fan Mark Farmer and pencilled by long-time LSH cover artist Alan Davis. It’s a loving Elseworlds tribute to the concepts and characters of the Silver Age Legion. Don’t miss it . . . And the much-loved Legion of Super-Heroes Archives are back in the high-quality hardcover format. The 240-page Volume 13 reprints Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes #224-233, featuring work by Jim Shooter, Paul Levitz, Mike Grell, Joe Staton, Jim Sherman, and others in stories featuring Stargrave, The Fatal Five, and the Dark Circle.

DC Comics Presents: Superman: Secret Identity #1

DISAPPOINTING COLLECTION: One of my all-time favorite Superman stories — Superman: Secret Identity — by Kurt Busiek and Stuart Immonen is finally back in print — but not in the quality book collection that it deserves. Instead, it’s being presented in two issues of DC’s $7.99 comics reprint format. (I remember when this format used to be a buck.) But at least it’s back for a new audience to enjoy. And hopefully we can share the secret about why it’s being reprinted now in a month or two.

FINALLY, SOME THINGS JUST CONFUSE ME: DC’s New 52 is still weeks away, but that isn’t stopping them from soliciting both a 1,216-page hardcover collection of the first issues of “The New 52” (at just $150) and a portfolio set of all 52 #1 covers (for $129). All of which will still be completely unseen before you have to order them. Confidence or foolhardiness? You be the judge! . . . Similarly, Marvel has three new posters (Wolverine and the X-Men, Uncanny X-Men, and Fantastic Four) for October. Which are represented in the new Marvel Previews by three giant black boxes with only the word CLASSIFIED. (What a waste of a page of Marvel Previews!) Now, they ultimately may be cool posters — but who buys a poster sight unseen?

More comics goodness next week!

KC CARLSON: Reminding you that sometimes logic and comic books don’t mix. Try chocolate sauce and dynamite instead.

Part 1 of this column ran last week. #1 was Marvel’s Fear Itself and #2 was DC Archive: Sugar and Spike Volume 1.

Genius, Isolated

3. Genius, Isolated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth: Yeah, I know I already recommended this a few months ago, but there’s some big news regarding the project, and the news is so exciting, it requires an even bigger recommendation. Due to the discovery of more amazing material in the Toth family archives, the project is expanding into a three-volume set, to be released as individual books. The newly reassembled first 288-page volume will now cover Toth’s early work and career, including his DC art from the 1940s, his amazing work at Standard, incredible Zorro comics from the 1950s, as well as — for the first time — the complete Jon Fury stories that Toth produced while in the army. Rare pages — including unfinished and unpublished work — are also included, as well as art and photographs provided by the Toth family.

Written by Dean Mullaney and Bruce Canwell, the text will feature material from dozens of interviews with Toth’s friends, peers, and family members. The goal is to provide a wide-ranging look at one of the most influential (and opinionated!) creators of comics. In his later years, Toth became well-known for his amazing (and frequently scathing) personal letters, essays for publication, and letters to the editor — almost all of them handwritten in Toth’s unique lettering style, and many of them illustrated with doodles or sketch examples of what he was trying to convey.

Volume two (scheduled for October) will feature Toth in the 1960s, including an extensive look at his work as a character designer in animation, as well as his return to comics in the 1970s and beyond.

The third volume, and the one I’m most excited about, will be a wide-ranging art book, primarily reproducing hundreds of Toth’s amazing model sheets for Hanna Barbera (Space Ghost, Dino Boy, Jonny Quest, Herculoids, Super Friends, Fantastic Four, and many others), as well as full-color presentation pieces designed to sell the series to networks. A slipcase for all three books will also be available with the third book.

You’re going to hear a lot about Genius, Isolated: The Life and Art of Alex Toth over the next year or so, including seeing it listed on a lot of Best Of lists and awards ballots. It promises to be one of the most fascinating, enlightening, and important comic history projects of the year. Don’t miss it. It’s the kind of project worth buying a new bookcase for! Published by IDW.

(By the way, all previous orders for the first solicitation of this book have been cancelled, due to this huge overhaul in its content. Please reorder this on the current order form to guarantee you’ll get one hot off the presses!)

For more Toth this month, check out Fantagraphics’ Setting the Standard: Alex Toth, a 416-page anthology of Toth’s crime, horror, SF, war, and romance work for Standard Comics from 1952-54, including an essay on Toth by Greg Sadowski based on Toth’s letters and interviews. All of the artwork is in full color and restored.

(EDITOR’S NOTE: For more on Genius, Isolated come back on Thursday, January 13 for our interview with Dean Mullaney.)

Matt Baker: The Art of Glamour

4. Matt Baker: The Art of Glamour: Today, Matt Baker is largely unknown to all but hardcore comic historians, Golden Age fans, and “Good Girl” art aficionados. Which is an incredible shame, as the artist (who died at the age of 37) left behind an astounding legacy of work, including, arguably, the first graphic novel — 1950’s It Rhymes With Lust. Baker is also one of the earliest recorded African-American artists in the field, and his work — including the best-known incarnation of the Phantom Lady — is much admired and influential. Despite being inducted into the Will Eisner Hall of Fame in 2009, little is known about him, and few are aware of his work. That’s about to change with the publication of Matt Baker: The Art of Glamour, written by Michael Eury (Dick Giordano: Changing Comics, One Day At A Time, Captain Action: The Original Super-Hero Action Figure) — a 192-page hardcover history of the artist and his work. Published by TwoMorrows and highly recommended.

Ruse

5. Other Marvel Goings-On: A blast from the past: Crossgen, last seen in 2004 before going out of business (and ultimately bought by Disney), is being revived as an imprint of another Disney-owned company, Marvel Comics. Beginning in March, two Crossgen titles are being revived as four-issue miniseries. Ruse is written by its original writer, Mark Waid, with art by Mirco Pierfederici, and covers by the original Ruse artist Butch Guice. Sigil, one of Crossgen’s first series, is being revived by writer Mike Carey and penciller Leonard Kirk. Hope this leads to more Crossgen projects in the future! . . . Spider-Man (or at least Ultimate Spider-Man) is no more, he has ceased to be, he’s shuffled off the mortal coil and joined the bleedin’ choir invisible! (Or, if we need to spell it out, he’s dead!) It happens in Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #156, and original Ultimate Spidey artist Mark Bagley is back just in time to pencil this momentous issue. Word on the street is that the death is for reals! And yet the book isn’t being cancelled. Watch for writer Brian Bendis to really show off his Spider Lore expertise with this storyline! . . . Artist Alan Davis teams with Young Avengers writer Allan Heinberg for a special Avengers: The Children’s Crusade – Young Avengers one-shot, featuring a new, alternative Young Avengers team. Is this not Marvel’s most entertainingly convoluted series ever? (At least since the original Excalibur series?) I love it! . . . Amazing Spider-Man #657 features a special tribute/follow-up to the fallen Fantastic Four member from the “Three” storyline, for a very private wake . . . Annihilators #1 is the first of a four-part mini featuring some of Marvel’s star-spanning heroes in a special 48-page, two-feature title. Up front is the new Annihilators team of Silver Surfer, Beta-Ray Bill, Gladiator, Quasar, and Ronan vs. the Dire Wraiths! In the back are the wacked-out adventures of Rocket Raccoon and Groot the, uh, walking, talking tree! Both series are written by the cosmic team of D ‘n’ A (Dan Abnet and Andy Lanning), with art by Tan Eng Huat and Timothy Green II. There are two covers — one of which is an awesome Rocket Raccoon & Groot cover by Mike Mignola! . . . Marvel Annual crossovers are back as Uncanny X-Men Annual #3 (this month’s listings), Steve Rogers: Super-Soldier Annual #1 (next month), and Namor: The First Mutant Annual #1 (soon) all combine to tell the tale of “Escape From the Negative Zone!” . . . Venom is starring in his very own ongoing series beginning this month. Is that possible? I guess those billions and billions of miniseries all just blended together in my head . . . Peter Milligan is writing a new five-issue weekly miniseries called 5 Ronin featuring Wolverine, Psylocke, Punisher, Hulk, and Deadpool(?) in a story set in 17th century Japan. Sounds wacky to me, but the various covers (by David Mack, David Aja, John Cassady, and others) are absolutely gorgeous. But you’ve already read about this in Roger’s interview with Milligan last week (and if not, go check it out!) . . . Don’t forget FF #1 — a new beginning (of what we assume is the old Fantastic Four title, although considering what’s happening in the book, FF may have a whole new meaning now!). It’s by the same great (old FF) creative team of Jonathan Hickman and Steve Epting.

Comic Book Marketplace

6. Zines: One of my favorite magazines about comics history makes a special one-shot comeback this month. Comic Book Marketplace returns with a look at the fascinating history of the Atlas/Seaboard line of comics, which for a short period in the 1970s managed to briefly lure many of comics’ top talents away from Marvel and DC. Atlas itself reformed last year to release new versions of The Grim Ghost and Phoenix, and more projects are promised in 2011. The Comic Book Marketplace Special features a reprint of Howard Chaykin’s cover for the original Scorpion #1 from 1975 . . . Also returning from limbo is The Comics Journal #301, now recast as a 624-page book of criticism, interviews, debate, commentary, and history. Al Jaffee and Joe Sacco are interviewed, and Robert Crumb’s Genesis is dissected by a panel of six critics, among other features . . . Also super-sized this month is Alter Ego #100, a 160-page edition featuring an interview with writer/editor Roy Thomas on his DC Comics projects in the 1990s (All-Star Squadron, Arak, and Captain Carrot, just to name a few), plus all the regular magazine features.

Superstar: As Seen On TV

7. Superstar: As Seen on TV: I’m so glad that IDW is keeping these great Kurt Busiek and Stuart Immonen projects from the wonderful, lamented Gorilla line in print. (Their other Gorilla project, Shockrockets, was reprinted last year.) Superstar, a hero literally powered by popularity, was sadly the last comic published by Gorilla. This volume reprints that one-shot, plus a short story featuring his brother, as well as a feature detailing the complete development of the character with lots of never-before-seen artwork, including character designs by Alan Davis and Paul Ryan. As I mentioned earlier, Stuart Immonen is currently drawing what will most likely be Marvel’s hottest series this year (Fear Itself), and Kurt Busiek has some amazing new projects just around the corner, one of which will make fans of Superman: Secret Identity (another great Busiek/Immonen project! although currently out of print — Boo, DC!) very happy. Busiek is also the creator of the devastatingly brilliant Astro City, which has happily survived all the recent Wildstorm shakeups and will continue at DC.

Jimmy Olsen #1

8. DC Round-Up: The big news at DC this month is that they’re holding the line at a $2.99 cover price for all of their standard, monthly, 32-page comic titles — plus bringing back lettercolumns in the near future! First, there’s a little cleanup to do from some of their popular, displaced back-up features . . . The recently dumped Jimmy Olsen back-up from Action Comics is being collected and finished in Jimmy Olsen #1, an 80-page book reprinting the stories from Action Comics #893-896 with an additional 30 new pages by Nick Spencer, RB Silva, and DYM. Considering that this was one of the better stories DC did last year, I hope the creators (and Jimmy!) get a shot at a ongoing title! . . . Another displaced back-up feature gets wrapped up in Giant-Size Atom #1, a 56-page one-shot continued from Adventure Comics . . . Former Milestone character Xombi returns to the DC Universe in a new ongoing title by writer John Rozum (Xombi’s co-creator, with Denys Cowan) and artist Frazier Irving promising contemporary urban horror . . . There are not one but two Super-Flash team-ups this month. Superman meets Barry Allen in Superman #709, and Superboy races Kid Flash for the first time in Superboy #5 . . . Darwyn Cooke illustrates a story for Vertigo’s House of Mystery #35 . . . Three new megastories are currently gearing up at DC this month: War of the Green Lanterns, Road to Flashpoint, and Reign of Doomsday. I wish I could get excited about any of them, but the anchor books for the first two (Green Lantern and The Flash) have both been running very late, and well, not really up to their usual high quality. (Perhaps writer Geoff Johns is overwhelmed by his new corporate responsibilities?) I’m not very excited by the prospect of them being either good or on time. Reign of Doomsday features DC’s most boring villain ever — Doomsday. Being an unstoppable engine of destruction is a great quality for video game foes, not so much for comic books, especially when they keep bringing him back over and over and over again. Besides, this era of the Justice League of America is the worst lineup of characters since the infamous Detroit-era of the series. So a boring team of heroes vs. a boring villain just isn’t my idea of an exciting comic book. Sorry DC, boring fight books are a dime-a-dozen, so not even worth it for holding the line at $2.99. The low cover price IS appreciated — it’s just better stories would be even more so.

Godzilla: Monster World

9. Godzilla: Monster World #1: I’m not 10 years old any more, but my inner child is all over Godzilla: Monster World #1 — mostly for the promise that for the first time in comic books, lots of the other beloved (really?) Toho movie monsters will be showing up with him! So. Very. Cool!!! I’m guessing that there will be lots of destruction and lots of RRRRRRROWWWWWWLLLLL-ing going on, so that will probably be enough plot for most of you! I will miss the most appealing aspects of the Toho flicks — the horrible/comical out-of-sync dubbing of the American versions. Although if anybody in comics could manage to pull that off in print, I’m guessing that the mad genius of Eric Powell (The Goon) would be the one to do it! Powell is writing the RRRRRRROWWWWWWLLLLLs for Phil Hester to illustrate, so a good time is probably guaranteed for all. Alex Ross is providing a variant cover — and checking off another icon on his Icon Checklist. (“Superman. Check. Captain America. Check. Godzilla. YIPPIE!!!”). It’s from IDW. For best results, check your brain at the door.

Godzilla #24

(For my money, the very best Godzilla appearance in comics has got to be Dum Dum Dugan vs. a temporally reduced-in-size Godzilla in a (more-or-less) boxing match in an NYC alley in the pages of Marvel Comics’ 1970s late, lamented Godzilla, King of the Monsters title (which was, essentially, a Nick Fury-less S.H.I.E.L.D. vs. Godzilla series). One of my favorite covers of all time comes from the last issue of the series — it depicts Godzilla walking off into the sunset (after obviously destroying a city). I get a lump in my throat — or is that heartburn? — every time I think about it.)

Fighting American

10. The Round-up: I’d also recommend the Fighting American collection from Titan Books, but Bob Greenberger beat me to it! Don’t miss his look at Howard Cruse’s The Complete Wendel coming soon! . . . Hellraiser’s not really my kinda thing, but if you can look at that guy without literally getting a headache, then you should check out the new series from BOOM! (as well as Westfield’s contest for a chance at a 1-in-50 cover, signed by Clive Barker himself!) . . . Fans of Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse should check out Dark Horse’s Dollhouse: Epitaphs. I had a kinda love-hate thing with the show (loved most of the characters, hated the concept), so I feel uncomfortable with a full-out rave on the sight-unseen comic version, but I don’t want all you Dollhouse/Whedon fans to miss out hearing about it! . . . I don’t know how many serious romance comics fans are left out there, but Agonizing Love: The Golden Era of Romance Comics – a 208-page full-color softcover anthology of vintage romance covers, advertisements, advice columns, quizzes, and complete stories from the late 1940s and 1950s — looks like it might be a massive sob-fest. Just in time for Valentine’s Day!

KC CARLSON is not really mad at anyone. He just wants better comic books. Is that really so much to ask? He works, thinks, and acts alone, so if you think he said something dumb here, it’s not really Westfield’s fault. Also, if used incorrectly, he may cause dry skin.

Marvel Godzilla cover from the Grand Comics Database.

Amazing Spider-Man #33

by Beau Smith

I’m going to be a little selfish and honest with you. I want to see a really bad guy get all busted up by a really good guy in comics for all the right reasons.

Yeah, it’s a little bit “retro” for me to ask that, but I’m also tired of people thinking retro is a bad thing. So many of the mainstream superhero comics these days are a steady diet of muddy morals, anti-heroes, sympathetic bad guys and more text than a Dan Simmons novel. Yeah, I think that borders with stories should be widened, but on the other end or the stick, we should get treated now and then to a good old school good vs. evil, punch the creep out kinda story. What’s it going to hurt?

If I had my choice of what superheroes I’d like to see perform this “Man-With-A-Fist Destiny,” I’d probably list Captain America, Spider-Man, Wildcat and The Thing. I’d pick Batman or Superman, but they’re so far from being a blue-collar hero these days it just wouldn’t work. Ever notice how much they jaw on and on about their feelings and emotions and… you get the picture.

I’m not saying that any of the above mentioned heroes isn’t currently defeating evil in a manly fashion, I’m just saying I’d love to see a streamlined story where some bad guy has committed a terrible crime, seems to have beaten our good guy and yet, through sheer guts and heart, the good guy gets up, shakes off the dust and blood and becomes an unstoppable juggernaut of justice and deals out one heck of an four color whuppin’.

Amazing-Spider-Man #33 page

Now, as a writer of over twenty years ,I could do this story and enjoy doing it, but just for a little while, I want to be a reader that gets surprised and entertained by someone else’s writing deeds. I want to feel some of the same entertainment emotion that I felt when I read Amazing Spider-Man #33 where it seemed all but over for Spider-Man as he was trapped under that huge tonnage of machinery, after it looked like Doctor Octopus had grinded Spider-Man down to where he could never get up. I crave that same thrill I got when Spider-Man lifted up that machinery, manned up and decided he was gonna smash some evil. I need to read that in a comic book again today. I really do. If I have to write it myself, I will, but as I said before, I really would love to enjoy it as a reader.

Spidey triumphs in Amazing Spider-Man #33

I think it’s going to be a while before, or if, I ever see it again. I think currently, with all the event envy that Marvel and DC are going through, it may be just wishful thinking on my part. I hope not. The heavy hands of editorial seems to be keeping this from happening. A lot of writers feel they’re writing movies, not comics. I just want to see a hero use less talk and prove his heroism through his actions and with pictures, not a bunch of school girl/Twilight jibber-jabber. Am I asking too much? I hope not.

Reed's pissed in this page from What If? #42

I will never, ever forget the chill I got when in What If…Invisible Girl Had Died # 42 (written by Peter B. Gillis with art by Ron Frenz) when Reed Richards had taken everything that the evil Annihilus had dished out, including taking the life of Sue Storm. I turned the page and came to the most kick-ass splash page ever where a VERY cold, pissed and unshaven Reed Richards utters the most manly nine words ever in Marvel Comics “I’ve come for you, Annihilus. You’re going to die.”

Oh, man! What a moment in comics! I am so very proud to say that I own that page of original art by Ron Frenz. I remember when I bought it from him, he kinda thought I was nutty for wanting such a simple, non-action splash page. To me, this was the perfect example of how a superhero comic book should make you feel. This to me showed how all of us feel if we think our loved ones have been harmed or will be harmed. It’s emotions at their most instinctual.

I need to feel this again from reading a comic book.

Who’s going to give it to me?

Your amigo,

Beau Smith

The Flying Fist Ranch

www.flyingfistranch.com

Archie Complete Daily Newspaper Comics Vol. 1

by KC Carlson

Just got my huge box of comics and books from Westfield last week! Still digging through it all, but here’s a few “quickie” reviews.

HOT DOG

Wayne Markley mentioned this a few days ago in his fine overview of Archie Comics, but I wanted to give another shout out to the fine folks at IDW for their excellent Archie: The Complete Daily Newspaper Comics: 1946-1948. Not only does this book contain almost 300 pages of early and seldom-seen (or collected) hysterical Bob Montana newspaper strips featuring Archie, Jughead, and all the gang, but there’s also a very interesting article about the history of Archie Comics — the company — tying together some previously undisclosed connections between the comic books and the pulp magazines of the era (and a bit of radio history as well), expertly researched and written by comics historian Maggie Thompson. So, you get a lot of funny comic strips and a detective story as well! Whatta deal! Yay, Maggie!

ASTRO

DC Universe Legacies #5

I won’t spoil too much about it, since it just came out, but DC Universe: Legacies #5 is a must-get issue, featuring 20 pages of amazing George Pérez artwork. There’s plenty of Crisis on Infinite Earth style-action (since that’s what the issue is spotlighting) and lots of Pérez back on the New Teen Titans to boot! As if that wasn’t enough, Walt Simonson delivers a one-two punch with his art for the eight-page back-up featuring Adam Strange and bunch of DC SF greats — with legendary lettering by John Workman! As always, the series is scripted by Len Wein, so it’s chock-full of old-school DC greatness!

WHOOPSY-DOO

Amazing Spider-Man #638

The Hype That Wasn’t award goes to Amazing Spider-Man’s One Moment in Time, four solid issues of Marvel melodrama that resolved exactly… what? And we waited years for this story? Between the angst-filled Kraven storyline and all this wallowing, all the fun has been completely sucked out of the Spider-Man titles. Worst of all — all that hard work to recover from the bad decision that was the original One More Day story has been thrown out the window, and now it’s been thrown back in our faces as a bad reminder. It’s done some serious damage to two of Marvel’s best characters, Mary Jane Watson and Peter Parker. (Or is this all justifying where the characters need to be for the next round of Spidey movies? I hate being cynical, but I hate comics that make me cynical even more.) Well, the Spidey-folk recovered from a big bomb before, so maybe they can do it again! At least the lettercols are still fun…

UNDERDOG

Some of my favorite superhero comics these days are the ones that fly under everybody’s radar, perhaps because I think that they have a little bit more “editorial freedom”, since they’re not obvious A-list titles, and therefore hopefully without so much scrutiny from above. I find myself reaching for these kind of books first, instead of the usual mega-hyped titles. They’re often (but not always) the place where the next mega-books and superstar creators come from. Who knew Frank Miller when he started on the just-hanging-on-from-cancellation 1979 Daredevil?

At DC, two of my current favorite books are both long-running characters with relatively new titles (as well as new versions of older characters). They also star female characters. That’s a lot of strikes against long-term survival right there.

KRYPTO

Supergirl

The newest in a long line of new Supergirls has had a slightly checkered history since being introduced like a mega-explosion by Jeph Loeb and Michael Turner in the pages of Superman/Batman #8-13. (In a storyline scheduled to be the next DC Animated release, although you couldn’t tell it from the title: Superman/Batman: Apocalypse). Quickly graduating into her own title, Supergirl floundered for what seemed like years as many talented creators attempted to forge a direction of the Girl of Steel — and all failed.

Eventually writer Sterling Gates and artist Jamal Igle turned the series around with a neat trick — instead of trying to develop high-concept storylines and situations, they simply concentrated on telling good solid stories. And it works. Both Gates and Igle excel at breaking their share of the storytelling down to its basic components, and then adding bits of flair here and there to make the stories pop and shine. They’re telling stories about a teenage girl (with incredible powers) just trying to fit into a world that she doesn’t fully understand yet. And that’s what’s compelling about what they do as storytellers.

(Plus, the first five pages of Supergirl #54 was also the best Jimmy Olsen story in years. I hope they get to keep him.)

ACE

Batgirl

The new Batgirl series is even newer than Supergirl, although it features a trio of characters who have been around nearly forever (at least in comic book time) — all of whom have been horribly handled (some might say tortured) in the hands of other creators. Barbara Gordon (the first Batgirl, originally introduced in the 1960s) was infamously crippled and discarded by the Joker (and DC), before being brilliantly brought back in an inspired new role as computer hacker Oracle by John Ostrander and Kim Yale, and made an even better character than the original over the years. Stephanie Brown, the former Spoiler and Robin, had so many atrocities inflicted upon her (not the least of which was death) by high-concept writers looking for a quick-and-dirty victim that there’s really not enough space here to list them all. Finally, there’s former Wonder Twin Wendy Harris, originally created for the Super Friends cartoon show in the 1970s. DC versions of her (and Marvin) were brought back a few years ago in the pages of Teen Titans as cannon fodder. They were attacked by a demon dog disguised as Wonder Dog. Marvin was killed, and Wendy was mauled so badly she was in a coma for months, and paralyzed from the waist down when she finally awoke. Oracle intervened when Wendy’s father (Oracle’s evil counterpart, The Calculator) attempted to cure her using the Anti-Life Equation. Wendy is now Oracle’s protégé, Proxy, and assists Stephanie Brown in her new role of Batgirl when Oracle is not available (due to Birds of Prey missions).

Depending on who’s doing the writing in the other Bat-books, the male Bat-folks are either tolerant/supportive of the female Bat-contingent or lunkheaded macho stereotypes. So it’s good to see a ‘sisters are doin’ it for themselves’ vibe in the regular Batgirl title, ably written by Bryan Q. Miller and usually drawn by Lee Garbett. If you’re looking for a good single issue to sample, try #14’s very fun Batgirl/Supergirl team-up issue, where the new Dynamic Duo take on 24 different, yet the same, 3-D Draculas. (I can say no more.) If you like your comics without so much Big Event screaming and death (and maybe a bit of fun), you won’t regret checking out Batgirl and Supergirl.

LUCKY

I Am An Avenger

Also, a quick plug for Marvel’s I Am An Avenger and other anthology books (Age of Heroes). I know a lot of fans are largely ignoring these collection of short stories, thinking that nothing much ever happens in them (at least compared to the Big Event books). Here’s where you’re wrong.

I love the anthology books for these reasons: 1) There’s always a chance that one of my fave creators can squeeze in a short story between other regular assignments. 2) The anthologies are the only place where new talents can break in and strut their stuff (while also learning their craft). Granted, first work isn’t always stellar work, but you could be witnessing tomorrow’s superstars today! 3) They feature chances to see fan-favorite characters you might not get to see anywhere else. 4) They run other kinds of stories — mostly stories that don’t necessarily rely on people hitting other people. Case in point: The beautiful “The Books of the Iron Fist” in I Am An Avenger #1 by Duane Swierczynski and Jason Latour. Apparently, it’s a side-story to the Shadowland event book (that I have no interest in reading), so I don’t know exactly what I’m reading about here, but I can see the beauty of this short character piece and can feel the pain of two long-running Marvel characters as their lives are being torn apart.

So, check out the anthologies whenever you can. ‘Course it might be nice if they didn’t cost $4…

ROOBY-ROO!

Scooby-Doo: Where Are You?

When I saw that Johnny DC was relaunching their long-running Scooby-Doo title with a new #1 (and new title: Scooby-Doo: Where Are You?), I was hoping that they’d incorporate some of the elements making the new Cartoon Network Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated show so much fun to watch. You’d think that after ten different cartoon series, two big-budget live-action movies, plus a slew of made-for-TV movies (both animated and live-action), there wouldn’t be much new to do with the franchise after almost 40 years. You’d be wrong.

The new show returns to the core of the original series — solving mysteries — instead of simply chasing ghosts and monsters (although there’s still a bit of that). Plus, Mystery Incorporated is spending some time fleshing out the core characters by giving them more personality and characterization and exploring their family background (parents and siblings make frequent appearances). Interpersonal relationships (i.e. romance) between the characters are now core to many of the new storylines, as well as adding both humor (Scooby jealous of Shaggy and Velma’s attraction) and teen angst (Daphne’s ongoing frustration about getting oblivious Fred’s attention). In addition, besides the new mystery every episode, there is an ongoing puzzle about another gang of teenage mystery-solvers from many years ago (who bear an eerie resemblance to the current Mystery Incorporated gang), featuring weekly clues from the mysterious Mr. E (geddit?), voiced by comedian Lewis Black.

Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated

The voice work in the show is exceptional, featuring Patrick Warburton as Sheriff Stone, Gary Cole as Mayor Fred Jones, Sr., and Matthew Lillard as Shaggy. (The original Shaggy voice, Casey Kasem, remains on the show as Shaggy’s dad, Colton.) Frank Welker continues as both Scooby-Doo and Fred, and Mindy Cohn continues as Velma. (You probably know that she started on The Facts of Life, but she’s been voicing Velma for about a decade as well.) That leaves Daphne, who is now voiced by Grey DeLisle, well-known for her many other roles as a voice actress, especially in the Star Wars universe. She’s also a talented singer, which she got to show off in the musical episode of Batman: The Brave and the Bold playing Black Canary, as well as my favorite SD:MI episode, In Fear of the Phantom. In that, Daphne, frustrated with Fred’s inattention, quits Mystery Inc., turns goth (or at least as goth as cartoons get), and becomes the lead singer of the Hex Girls, calling herself Crush, and writes and sings a torch song about Fred, “Trap of Love”.

Anyway, really cool show. Are any of these new, fun elements anywhere in the new Scooby-Doo comic book? No such luck. How disappointing. So much for corporate synergy. But maybe something might happen in the future, since Westfield’s own Bob Greenberger has got a Scooby story or two coming up in the book. Watch for them! Other former DC editors are also participating in the comic. Chris Duffy has a fun story in issue #1, and former Bat-Editor Scott Peterson is Scooby’s new editor!

Although the show is currently in a cycle of reruns (so you can catch up!), new episodes of Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated air Monday nights at 7 P.M. (EST) on Cartoon Network in the US, and are repeated frequently throughout the week. And watch for a SD:MI/Batman: The Brave and the Bold crossover that’s reportedly in the works.

KC CARLSON is thinking about dogs. I don’t know why. Woof!

DISCLAIMER: Westfield Comics is a fine company who never disparages anybody, ever. And loves dogs. KC Carlson is an idiot who’s read too many comic books and thinks he knows things. He’s usually wrong. He also doesn’t think he likes dogs, but for some reason they like him.

Beau Smith

by Beau Smith

I am at peace with comics right now.

I have finally worked out my old school ways with the part of me that embraces modern technology. I think that’s important right now, not only for me, but hopefully for everyone who enjoys comics.

For the longest time I was conflicted on how I was going to deal with reading, buying and collecting back issues, new issues, graphic novels and trade paperbacks. Not so much on the budget end, because I know how much money I have to spend and what I don’t.

Steve Rogers: Super-Soldier

I started with new comics. As you know, they are no longer a monthly form of cheap entertainment. The average cover price is now $3.99. I really went down my list of monthly comic books that I HAD to buy and looked long and hard at them. Like an NFL team I had to cut the roster down for the season to begin.

I am proud of myself in the fact that I did really think hard on what books I was buying and not really enjoying as much as I should for the cover price. I cut them from the team. On the other hand, I am very proud of the books that I kept because I really do enjoy them and they are worth the cover price and even a little more for me to read them every month.

I figured I was saving myself a little money and at the same time leaving a small cash cushion if something new popped up that I wanted to add to the must buy list.

Amazing Spider-Man #1

Next I looked at my back issue consumption. You may find it hard to believe, but even though I’ve been buying and collecting comics since 1958, I do not have everything or all that I want. I’m just a few issues shy of having complete runs of The Avengers, The Fantastic Four, Amazing  Spider-Man and other key Marvel Comics of my youth. Let me make it clear that by complete runs I mean “Complete Beauology Runs.” That means issues #1 through #100. That was a goal of mine way back when I was a small child. To be honest, yes, I do have almost all issues past #100 in most cases, but the solid 100 is my goal.

So as you can already tell, it ain’t gonna be that easy to buy Amazing Fantasy #1 or Amazing Spider-Man #1 through #6 when it comes to money. I’m not talking mint condition, just readable. Through trades and selling off other stuff, I should be able to meet these goals one day before I croak and my family just heaves all this stuff. (And yes, I have more than my share of Marvel Essentials and DC Showcase Presents, but those are for anytime reading. The true back issues are the hobby.)

That brings me to trade paperbacks and graphic novels. I have thought long and hard on what series, arcs and mini-series I want to have as single issues and those that I want in a big fat book. Once I took the time to do this, it wasn’t that hard. I just did my research ahead of time in the Westfield Catalog and Diamond Previews catalog. I’m glad I did because it really does bring back the hobby and collecting part of comic books that I had let slide. By that, I mean the special feeling.

Now in 2010, we all have comic books in digital form to contend with and think about. Being a big fan of my iPad and reading books and comics on it as the major part of me getting it, I have found a place for it as well.

First off, for travel I will download a couple of comics that I haven’t read that don’t fall into the category of what I described above in New Comics, Back issues and Trade paperbacks. Those are for the something new feeling. Kinda like a treat after a meal.

Iron Man

For non-travel, I’ve downloaded a few classic comics just to see them on the very nice, bright and shiny screen and really play with blowing the art up and checking panels I know so well in a more personal way. One of the first that I downloaded was an early issue of Tales Of Suspense with the original version of Iron Man by my buddy Don Heck. That is a real treat! I cannot tell you how many times I’ve gone back and re-read and looked at that book.

Another thing that the digital downloading offers is a wide variety of FREE comics from all kinds of different publishers. I’ve found that a GREAT way for me to try out new stuff that I may not have ever thought about buying in print. After reading a few I’ve discovered that there are new books to add to my must buy print list and also some that I’m glad I didn’t throw $4.00 at.

Batman/Wildcat

In the big picture I think I have made wiser choices with my time and my money. I may have even saved a few dollars as well. Most importantly I am reading what I enjoy and this has helped keep my enjoyment of comic books alive and well. That’s important to me. I also hope that more of my own comics will be available for download in the near future so I can show them off to anyone with eyeballs. I’d love to see my Guy Gardner run or my Batman/Wildcat, Catwoman/Wildcat series offered up.

So you may wanna think about how you are gonna work your comic book reading in this ever changing, world of technology, higher prices and vanishing back issues.

Me….I am at peace with comic books.

For the moment.

Your Zen-like amigo,

Beau Smith

The Flying Fist Ranch

www.flyingfistranch.com

Batman: Odyssey

1. CLASSIC CREATORS RETURN TO CLASSIC CHARACTERS:  Neal Adams writes and illustrates Batman: Odyssey, a new six-part miniseries from DC Comics. For those of us reading comics in the late 1960s and 70s, Adams was THE Batman artist, so his return to write and draw a brand-new Batman tale (featuring a bunch of classic friends and foes) is pretty big news. Meanwhile, over at Dark Horse, Jim Shooter is reviving some classic 1960s Gold Key characters (although you may know them better from their 1990s revival at Valiant Comics). First up, in July, is Shooter’s re-imaginative take on Doctor Solar, Man of the Atom, in conjunction with artist Dennis Calero. The first super-sized issue also includes a reprint of the first Doctor Solar story from 1962! Coming up later this year are new takes on Magnus, Robot Fighter; Turok , Son of Stone;  and other classic Gold Key characters. Watch for Roger Ash’s exclusive interview with Shooter — coming soon, right here at the Westfield Blog. Also in July, classic European artist Milo Manara teams with classic X-Men writer Chris Claremont for X-Women, a 64-page prestige one-shot from Marvel Comics. Storm, Psylocke, Shadowcat, Marvel Girl, and Rogue team for a globe-trotting adventure. With Manara pencilling, you know your eyes are in for a real treat.

Avengers: Children's Crusade

2. MARVELOUS EVENTS: I’m looking forward to the new Avengers: The Children’s Crusade nine-part miniseries staring the Young Avengers and featuring the return of the Scarlet Witch (who may or may not have some unrevealed family ties to a couple members of the team). I think that the original Young Avengers series, written by Allan Heinberg and drawn by Jim Cheung, was one of the best things that Marvel has done in recent years, and I’m very happy to see these two creators paired again on this series (which will be wisely released on a bi-monthly schedule, hopefully alleviating the massive deadline problems that hampered the first series). It will also be nice to see the Young Avengers become more of a presence in the MU, instead of just appearing in miniseries tie-ins to the Event-of-the-Month. . . Also in July is Steve Rogers: Super Soldier, which is apparently a miniseries also, but its length is not mentioned in the solicitation materials. I’m not crazy about the title, but it will be great to see the original Captain America back in his own book, written by Ed Brubaker and pencilled by Dale Eaglesham, so you know it’s gonna read and look great! . . . Also, fans of Marvel’s ground-level characters (Daredevil, Luke Cage, Moon Knight, Punisher, plus Wolvie & Spidey) should check out Shadowland, a new five-part event by Andy Diggle and Billy Tan. . . By now, you’ve already heard about Spider-Man: One Moment in Time, beginning in Amazing Spider-Man #638 and running for four double-sized issues. It promises to answer all the questions about Spidey and Mary Jane’s relationship and history since One More Day (and apparently revealing untold secrets dating back as far as PP & MJ’s wedding day). But wait! Didn’t they promise to reveal all the secrets the last time MJ showed up?  The difference this time is that One Moment in Time is written by Joe Quesada himself (chief perpetrator of One More Day). So I’m thinking that if Spidey fans don’t get the actual goods this time, there’s gonna be lotsa hot, steamy cups o’ Joe thrown into the real Joe’s face.

Superman #701

3. DC COMICS: BEGINNINGS AND ENDINGS: J. Michael Straczynski’s first full issues of Superman (#701) and Wonder Woman (#601) premiere in July, setting the stage for a change in direction for both characters. Also, Paul Cornell and Pete Woods are the new creative team on Action Comics, starting with #891. . . Adventure Comics returns to its historical numbering with issue #516, the first issue to lead-feature the Legion of Super-Heroes by Paul Levitz, Kevin Sharpe, and Wayne Faucher. New back-up feature will be the Ray Palmer Atom by Jeff Lemire and Mahmud Asrar, following a Brightest Day: Atom Special by the same team. . . Time Masters: Vanishing Point is a new six-part miniseries written and drawn by Dan Jurgens. Rip Hunter puts together a super-team of time-traveling heroes including Superman, Green Lantern, and Booster Gold in a story that ties into the The Return of Bruce Wayne event. (Speaking of which, has anyone looked between the sofa cushions for him? That’s where I always find my car keys!). . . Gail Simone’s fan-favorite town full of super-folks returns  in a new six-part Welcome to Tranquility miniseries: One Foot in the Grave, with art by Horacio Domingues. . . Meanwhile, Ex Machina wraps up its Eisner Award-winning run with issue #50 by Brian K. Vaughn and Tony Harris. The groundbreaking political thriller will be long-remembered. . .  Also wrapping up: Warlord with issue #16 and The Great Ten with #9 (one issue short of its originally announced conclusion).

Icons

4. ARTIST COLLECTIONS AND HISTORIES: There are a bonanza of great artist retrospectives available this month. Icons: The DC Comics and Wildstorm Art of Jim Lee is exactly what it sounds like, and it looks to be a great value as well, weighing in at 304 pages and including over 500 full-color and pencilled illustrations, featuring Lee’s best and rare art. Also included is a brand-new Legion of Super-Heroes story written by Paul Levitz and illustrated by Lee. We are currently listing the Previews Exclusive Hardcover Edition of the book, which features additional pages of pencils from Batman: Hush, Infinite Crisis, and Superman: For Tomorrow. The PX edition also features an exclusive cover of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman by Lee. (The regular edition of this book will be listed at another time). . . The Art of Neal Adams hardcover offers up classic and rare work spanning Adams’ entire career, including a section of Adams’ seldom-seen paintings. Fully annotated by Adams, the book comes in two formats from Vanguard Productions: a regular 136-page, full-color hardcover, or a deluxe slipcased Previews Exclusive Edition including 16 extra pages of vintage Adams artwork. . . John Buscema: Michelango of Comics is a 176-page collection featuring over 200 examples of Buscema’s original art. Author Brian Peck provides a history as well as comments from Buscema’s colleagues. Available from Hermes Press in two versions: a softcover and a deluxe hardcover including a plate of Buscema art, inked, signed, and numbered by Joe Sinnott (limited to 300 copies). . .  From Shadow to Light: The Life and Art of Mort Meskin is a new 220-page hardcover critical biography of this influential but often overlooked artist. Meskin’s sophisticated chiaroscuro art technique influenced artists including Jack Kirby, Jerry Robinson, Alex Toth, Steve Ditko, Steranko, and many more. Written and compiled by Steven Brower and published by Fantagraphics. . . Al Williamson Archives Volume One from Flesk Publications opens up the Master’s private files to showcase much unseen and unpublished work. This first volume features Williamson’s SF and fantasy artwork, including unpublished newspaper strips and comic pages from the 1950s. 64 pages in full color. . . TwoMorrows has a couple of new artist-focused books as well. The latest in the Modern Masters series takes a look at the career of Jeff Smith, featuring a new Bone cover by Smith. There’s also a look at RASL and his Shazam: Monster Society of Evil work. 120 pages, eight of which are in color. . . The Thin Black Line: Perspectives on Vince Colletta is a 112-page softcover written by Robert L. Bryant. Colletta is probably the most notorious inker in the history of the business (some would say the worst), often taking short cuts to save extremely late books, but many pencillers (including classic greats) maintained that he took shortcuts on all his assignments. Stan Lee, Roy Thomas, Mark Evanier, and others pull no punches in their criticism — and praise — of Colletta.

Johnny Comet

5. NEW NEWSPAPER STRIP COLLECTIONS: IDW’s The Library of American Comics begins yet another classic comic series in July — X-9: Secret Agent Corrigan by Archie Goodwin and Al Williamson. This beautiful and influential newspaper strip originally ran from 1967 to 1979. Volume 1 includes strips from 1967-1969 in a gorgeous 288-page volume. . . Frank Frazetta’s The Complete Johnny Comet collects the racing strip, shot from Frazetta’s personal artist’s proofs. 224-page hardcover from Vanguard. . . Classic Comics Press also starts up a new reprint series in July with John Cullen Murphy’s Big Ben Bolt, a boxing strip. The first volume includes strips from 1950 to 1952. . . Fantagraphics in July offers up a new Peanuts volume (the 14th) featuring strips from 1977-1978, Peppermint Patty on the cover, and an introduction by Alec Baldwin. Also from Fantagraphics is a new Willie & Joe collection by Bill Mauldin. Back Home features 288 pages of moving postwar cartoons. . . Not many people remember the Conan the Barbarian newspaper strip (I didn’t), but Dark Horse does and is collecting the entire run of 1978-1981 strips in a 280-page hardcover collection is September (but listed now). Written by Roy Thomas and Doug Moench, with art by John Buscema, Ernie Chan, and others.

Archie: Pureheart the Powerful

6. THE OBLIGATORY ARCHIE MENTION: IDW has a new Archie collection that will interest many super-hero fans. The original 1960s Archie: Pureheart the Powerful stories are reprinted in a 144-page, full-color trade paperback. Originally appearing in Life With Archie, the Pureheart stories were an instant smash in the camp era of the 1966 Batman TV show, and they quickly spun off into their own (short-lived) series. Now, all the original stories have been compiled for the first time under one cover — just in time for the revival of the super-character in all-new adventures, coming soon directly from Archie Comics. (Hopefully this IDW collection will sell well enough so that the adventures of Jughead as Captain Hero, Betty as Superteen, and Reggie as Evilheart will also be compiled). . . Speaking of Life With Archie, that classic title is being revived by Archie Comics as a new 52- page magazine featuring the continuation of both the Archie Marries Betty and Archie Marries Veronica storylines (in separate stories, of course). Life With Archie: The Married Life #1 debuts in July and will also feature pull-out posters and exclusive Archie news. Some comic stores do not support the magazine format, so if you wait to find it at your local comic shop, you may be out of luck — but you can order this from Westfield with complete confidence.

Richard Stark's Parker

7. SAMPLERS: There are a couple of interesting sampler items out in July. First up is a 24-page taste of of the next Darwyn Cooke Richard Stark’s Parker graphic novel — a complete chapter of The Outfit entitled The Man With the Getaway Face. Cover priced at just two bucks (and printed at 8” x 10”), this is a major bargain (as well as potential future collector’s item). Way cool idea. . . Even cheaper is The Smurfs: The Smurfnapper, a 24-page Smurfs story by Peyo for only a buck. It’s to promote Papercutz’ new line of Smurfs graphic novels. Here’s why it’s cool: First, they’re blue (duh!). Second, if you’ve never read Peyo’s original Smurf stories they’re WAY better than the occasionally beloved and frequently annoying cartoon show. Third, Peyo’s stories don’t actually talk, and there isn’t that obnoxiously cloying theme song. (That I have now put back into your heads. Sorry.) Finally, it lays the groundwork for the obvious and inevitable Parker/Smurfs crossover. (I made that last one up.)

Comic Book Guy

8. FUN STUFF: Bongo presents the biggest no-brainer in comics — a five-issue miniseries called Comic Book Guy: The Comic Book! The sell copy cracks me up: “4 Variant covers included on EVERY copy of issue 1 (Does this make sense? Heck if we know!)” Plus, it’s drawn by my old pal John Delaney, from scripts by Ian Boothby. . . Dark Horse collects the never-before-reprinted, John Stanley-written and drawn Little Lulu’s Pal Tubby stories in the first volume of a new reprint series. Volume 1, containing the first six issues, is 224 pages of full-color fun. Also listed is Volume 2 of Giant Size Little Lulu — 672 full-color pages, collecting Little Lulu #6-22. . . Fractured Fables has some of today’s best comics creators retelling classic fairy tales for a kid-friendly audience. Under a cover by Mike and Laura Allred, there are 160 pages of art and story by Jill Thompson, Bryan Talbot, Camilla D’errico, Ben Templesmith, Bill Morrison, Scott Morse, Larry Marder, Terry Moore, Ted McKeever, and many others. This all-star hardcover is published by Image Comics. . . Usually, Scott Morse’s work makes me sigh because it’s so beautiful, but his new project from IDW makes me giggle with glee. Strange Science Fantasy is a throwback to pop culture of the 50s and 60s with hip hot-rodders and gearheads and folks who say “Daddy-o” a lot. And who is The Headlight? It’s the Future of Sci-Fi — Built from the Past! And High Octane Adventure to boot! . . . Alter Ego #95 puts the spotlight on Marvel’s beloved (and strangely un-Marvel Masterworked) 1960s parody comic book Not Brand Ecch, featuring a new cover by Mirthful Marie Severin! Who says a comic book has to be good? (Hmmm. Somehow that classic tagline takes on new meaning in the modern era. Not going there, though.)

Famous Monsters of Filmland

9. WEIRD STUFF: It’s alive! Famous Monsters of Filmland rises from the dead, courtesy of IDW. The first new issue is #251, now in full color. Featuring a special memorial to FM’s late, great Forrest J. Ackerman, an interview with Ray Bradbury, news about Resident Evil, Predators, and True Blood, and a new cover by Richard Corben. 128 pages. . . I currently don’t read either comic, but Wildstorm/IDW’s X-Files/30 Days of Night is such a brilliant idea for a crossover that I think I can’t miss this six-part miniseries. It’s written by Steve Niles and Adam Jones and drawn by Tom Mandrake. It all starts when the FBI sends Agents Mulder and Scully to Wainright, Alaska, to investigate evidence of a possible cannibal killer… and then things get weirder. . . I don’t read much of the Top Cow Universe either, but Artifacts #1 sounds like one of those jump in head-first kinda stories featuring everybody. It’s the event FIVE years in the making, it says here. I love it when a plan comes together. Written by Ron Marz and illustrated by Michael Broussard. . .  The second volume of Craig Yoe’s Good Girl Art Library features Fritzi Ritz by Nancy creator Ernie Bushmiller. The weird part is what was sweet Aunt Fritzi doing as a pin-up queen? This bizarre mix of good girl poses and surreal humor is hopefully explained in Yoe’s intro, which includes lots of rare Bushmiller art and photos.

10. GUEST-EDITED WIZARD: Yes, Mark Millar guest-edits Wizard #228. This isn’t so much of a recommendation as it is a warning.

X-Men

10.5.  A NEW X-MEN #1: As Marvel’s sales copy states, this is the “First X-Men #1 in 20 Years!”  I’m actually surprised that there hasn’t been one every year, since printing X-Men #1s used to be like printing money. Are there multiple covers? Yes! Five of them! Hot creative team? Artist: Paco Medina. Rising Star. Check. Writer: Victor Gischler. Who? (Oh, wait. I don’t read Deadpool or Punisher or hard-boiled crime novels, so of course I wouldn’t know who he is, since Marvel’s not exactly promoting the heck out of him.) Subject: Vampires. Oooo! Trendy! Hope they’re sparkly! Actually, I’m gonna be buying this just like everybody else. And hoping that it can actually rise above this seemingly by-the-numbers approach to marketing it.

WESTFIELD COMICS would like KC CARLSON to remind everybody that his crackpot opinions are his and only his and do not reflect the opinions (or opossums) of anybody at Westfield. Mostly because my opinions (or opossums) are not mirrors. (Also, they’re not really my opinions. I rent them from the 12-year-old skateboard punk who lives across the street from me, who sadly knows more about current comics than I do. I know more about opossums, however. So there.)

Typed on Jeff Moy’s kitchen table with a broken back. No, the table doesn’t have a broken back. I do. And it was a really good trick to type with it.

X-Men #115

by Roger Ash

“What the heck is magic time, Roger?”

Good question! For the purpose of this column, “Magic Time” refers when comics were magic to you. I’ve found that with many of my friends this is the time shortly after you discovered comics and they had the biggest impression on you. It’s the time when you couldn’t wait for new comic day at your local comic shop, or if you’re old like me, when you’d haunt the spinner rack at the local convenience store looking for new issues of your favorite comics. Or when you were sure every UPS truck that drove down the street had your latest shipment from Westfield. (Yes, I know Westfield doesn’t ship by UPS now, but they did back when I was a customer.)

For me, “Magic Time” was the mid-70s to mid-80s. Granted, I didn’t start collecting until the late 70s, but I got a lot of back issues in those days before comics were collected mere months after they were published. Howard the Duck by Steve Gerber & Gene Colan. X-Men by Chris Claremont and John Byrne. Amazing Spider-Man by Roger Stern and John Romita Jr. Thor by Walter Simonson. Fantastic Four by John Byrne. American Flagg by Howard Chaykin. Detective by Steve Englehart and Marshall Rogers. Warlock by Jim Starlin. New Teen Titans by Marv Wolfman and George Perez. Dr. Strange by Steve Englehart and Frank Brunner. Just typing this makes me smile. And those titles are just the tip of the iceberg. (and these links will take you to current collections of the books if you want to see what had me so excited.)

Howard the Duck #15

Comics were new and exciting and fresh to me. I could pick up a new issue for 35 cents and see if I liked it. The stories may have been based on what came before, but at that point, I was unfamiliar with what came before. It felt like the creators were taking chances, stretching their wings, and speaking to their readers in ways comics outside of the underground hadn’t before. C’mon, Dr. Bong in Howard the Duck? Really? An obvious drug reference that completely escaped the Comics Code. Or how about having Dr. Strange meet God? Adam Warlock fighting an evil version of himself. Very trippy, mind-expanding stuff.

Thor #353

But even within the normal strictures of superheroes, things were new and fresh. Part of that came from the right creators being on the right book at the right time. Thor was never a character that interested me much, but when Walter Simonson took over the book, that all changed. The mix of traditional superheroics, Norse mythology, and Simonson’s dynamic art made Thor and his world exciting to me. Around the same time, John Byrne began his run on Fantastic Four, which is probably the most celebrated run on the book since Stan Lee & Jack Kirby. Byrne’s mix of family dynamics and cosmic adventure made this book a favorite of mine month after month.

Critters #10

And the burgeoning direct market brought in new publishers that added even more new and exciting comics to the mix. Over at First, Howard Chaykin’s American Flagg mixed adventure and politics into a heady, can’t miss brew. Fantagraphics’ anthology series Critters introduced me to two series that quickly became favorites; Stan Sakai’s Usagi Yojimbo and Mike Kazaleh’s Adventures of Captain Jack.

Things have changed since then. I’ve changed. Comics have changed. There are still wonderful comics being done today, but I doubt any will have the impact on me that those I read during my magic time did. So, what is your magic time? What books got you going when you first started reading comics? Post your comments below and let me know.

Now, go read a comic!

Cover images for this column come from the Grand Comics Database.